Shooting The Hippopotamus

A correspondent of the London Field sends to that journal the following account of hls late experience in shooting this powerful and dangeróus animal. " Here, on my first day, I lost my way in the jungle, about four miles inland, and for a long time was in a great fright, climbing trees to try and get a view. I iortunately met some nativos, who climbed a coeoanut-tree and got me some milk, and on my trying to describe the sea, at once made signs of intelligence. Thinking I wanted to get to a lake to shoot hippopotami, they took me two more miles inland, and, on reaching some swampy ground made signs of caution. At last, parting the foliage, they showed me a small lagoon, and for the flrst time I beheld the mighty hippopotamus in his native lair, never disturbed by a white man before. My disgust may be imagined as I had only my smoothbore, and on the opposite side of the lake lay some eighteen hippos basking in the sun, and now and then giving a bellow. I took accurate hearings of the wind and sun, and at last sacceded (after much fatigue, walking through swamp and jungle) in reaching the boat. The Mext morning at daybreak I was under way, with our black iuterpreter, and armtsd with my Martini rifle. We arrived at a villiage, and some natives immediately volunteered to guide me, and come and see the fun. They Late hippos, which do great mischief to their little crops, sugar-canes, &c, besides frightening them out of their wits at night, and often knocking down their houses. When we reached the lake there lay the unconscious hippos as bef ore, in about six feet of water, their heads just above the surface. The blacks guided me around to the other side of the lake, where, by wading out through the thick high sedge, I got within about 70 yards of my quarry, one of the blacks acting as a rest for my rifle, and very steady he was. I selected the biggest head as my target, and sent my little messenger on his fatal journey. It passed through the ramus of the animal's lower jaw, smashing the atlas and axis, and the death struggle that ensued gave me an idea of what a mighty brute the hippo is. It's entire body was hurled out of the water (feet . first) a most fatal sign, and volumes of blood, mud and water were sent high into the air, obscuring everything. About twenty seconds afterward a large one rose to breathe some eighty yards distant, and 1 sent No. 2 straight into his brain between eye and ear. Death was in this case so immediate that the animal did not make quite so much disturbance as the first one. The natives were astounded, and looked on the rifle and me as objects of the greatest interest. I t.hen shot two more, and by this time the bodies of the first two werebeing dragged ashere. Next morning I was up early to cut off their heads, as I knew they would be floating by that time, and about ten blacks accompanied me, one of them making fast a rope to the leg. On the the flrst being landed the blacks gave a hearty cheer, something like an Irish ' Ullagone' and I, jumping on the huge carcass, proceded to make a speech duly rendered into Swahils by my interpreter. That day I spent five hours up to my middle ia water getting the heads off, the skin being about two and a-half inches thick, and like india-rubber. The blacks cut off all the flesh, and bore away the skulls to the boat. Mary Anderson is worth $300,000, and Lotta 400,000. They're both Just lovely, but we think Lotta is just a trifle more charming.